What Every Woman Should Have

Every Woman Should Have:

• One old love she can imagine going back to, and one who reminds her how far she has come.
• Enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to and needs to.
• Something perfect to wear if the employer or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour.
• A youth she's content to leave behind and a past so juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age.
• The realization that she is actually going to have an old age and some money set aside to fund it.
• A set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra.
• One friend who always makes her laugh, and one who lets her cry.
• A good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family.
• Eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel honored.
• A resume that is not even the slightest bit padded.
  

Every Woman Should Know:

• How to fall in love without losing herself.
• How to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without ruining the friendship.
• When to try harder, and when to walk away.
• How to have a good time at a party she'd never choose to attend.
• How to ask for what she wants in a way that makes it most likely she'll get it.
• That she can't change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents.
• That her childhood may not have been perfect, but it's over.
• What she would and wouldn't do for love or more.
• How to live alone, even if she doesn't like it.
• Whom she can trust, whom she can't, and why she shouldn't take it personally.
• Where to go, be it to her best friend's kitchen table, or a charming inn in the woods, when her soul needs soothing.
• What she can and can't accomplish in a day, a month, and a year.

Written by Pamela Redmond Satran
Originally appeared in the May 1997 Edition of Glamour Magazine